John Cena Reveals His Pay In Rookie Years Of WWE
Highlights
- John Cena started out with a humble $12,500 contract in the early 2000s but worked his way up through hard work and determination.
- Despite struggling in the beginning, Cena chose to go through hardships and live in his car to pursue his wrestling dreams.
- Cena's perseverance paid off as he signed better contracts over time, eventually becoming a household name and earning millions in the WWE.
Yesterday, John Cena took part in an extensive interview on Impaulsive, the podcast of WWE United States Champion Logan Paul. During their talk, the two covered many topics, including Cena's wrestling future, and if he'd ever take an executive role with the company, like The Rock now is doing as a board member for TKO. They also spoke about the humble beginnings of Cena's career.
In the early 2000s, before his memorable SmackDown debut against Kurt Angle that birthed the Ruthless Aggression era, Cena was a no-name rookie struggling to make it. He is now a household name worth millions, but starting out in his rookie years, he struggled to make it. Cena told Logan Paul just how bad his early contracts were. He said:
"There was a moment where I knew there was a possible path, and that was when I got my first contract. I'm very vocal about this, because of the times, it was height of the WCW-WWF wars where everyone was under contract because they didn't want you going to the other place. It was like the .com war. You have a .com? I'll buy it. My first contract was for $12,500 a year. I quit my job. I still lived in Los Angeles. I had to operate pretty lean. I didn't have to, I chose to. In all the stories I tell, 'I lived in my car,' I did that by choice. I had a warm bed and roof over my head in Massachusetts. My dad is the most giving person to his sons, 'You always have a home here, I'll always take care of you.' I wanted to do that. I chose to go through some hardships to be where I'm at. I quit because my philosophy was, 'This is my job. I'm being paid, I'm a professional. This is my job. I will find a way to make it work because someone has bet on me and if I don't let them down, I can inch forward. I did that. My second contract was for like $25,000. Then, they moved me to Kentucky, and it became $50,000. They moved me to TV and it became $75,000. Then, I ended up signing a better deal and a better deal." (h/t Fightful)
John Cena: Age, Height, Relationship Status & More Thing To Know About Him
John Cena is one of the famous WWE stars ever. Still, there are some things fans don't know. Here's everything you need to know about John Cena.How Much Money Did John Cena Make In WWE In 2023?
For about 15 years, John Cena was the face of WWE. He made millions as he won his 16 world championships, but how much did Cena make from WWE in 2023 as a part-timer?
In 2023, it was revealed what WWE's top stars make. The lowest salary now is $250,000, but it's the big name part-timers who make the most. Topping the list was Brock Lesnar at $12 million. John Cena came in at second with $8.5 million. He also gets $500,000 for each main event appearance and receives 5% of his merchandise sales.
